During the construction of wooden structures, it is often necessary to use a relatively large amount of lumber or other panel material. For example, lumber may be typically used to form both interior and exterior walls of buildings and houses, and may also be used to fabricate forms which are used when pouring concrete foundations. In addition, lumber is used in siding, wooden decks or porches, wooden floors, and cabinets. Because lumber is typically purchased in predetermined lengths, it is often necessary to repeatedly cut lumber to form one of the aforementioned structures.
Because lumber is relatively heavy and bulky, it is often difficult to uniformly cut the lumber such that the cut is straight and in a direction which is substantially perpendicular to the length of the lumber. The reason for this difficulty is that a relatively large effort is required to repeatedly position an often long piece of lumber each time a cut is to be made. In addition, it is often difficult to position and secure a piece of lumber with one hand, and accurately position a hand-held electrically operated circular saw with the other hand. These problems are compounded by the fact that circular saws are relatively difficult to control with one hand while lumber is being cut. Furthermore, certain types of woodworking, such as cabinetmaking, require very precise cuts which can be difficult to achieve with a hand-held saw.
While the use of table saws and panel saws may overcome some of these problems, they are often of little use to the craftsman who may find it virtually impossible to repeatedly transport these heavy pieces of equipment to different job sites. These saws typically require a considerable amount of floor space, since the panels are moved against a stationary saw blade. Accordingly, there is a need for a relatively portable and compact device which enables the craftsman to conveniently make precise, uniform cuts in panel material.